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Delhi gangrape case: Prime accused Ram Singh commits suicide

Delhi gangrape prime accused Ram Singh on Monday committed suicide by hanging himself in Tihar Jail. Ram Singh was to be produced in the court later today for a hearing in the case.

According to Times Now, the incident took place at 5am in jail number 3 of Tihar. His body has been sent to Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital for postmortem. ​ [Link shared by Anil Singhal]

I think this confirms what was reported earlier, that he had some mental issues. The cruelty he inflicted and his reputation for being ‘mental’ too was also indicative’.

I would have liked to see him legally hanged for murder, that would have put fear of law in potential rapist’s mind. How did the jail authorities not foresee and prepare for this?

The issue I have with anybody who is intensely hated, dying in jail in suspicious circumstances instead of being hanged via legal procedure is that this might set a dangerous precedence. What if in some future day some innocent citizen is wrongly accused (while the real criminals go free and continue to rape and torture) and then instead of a legal procedure – which is every citizens’ right, they commit suicide and the country rejoices like some TOI commenters, who wish he would rot in hell? Why don’t we see the danger of legal procedures not being followed?

Would it not have been better if he had been hanged for torturing and killing?

I agree with this comment on the news linked above:
“Atma Gandhi (Singapore)
Being able to Commit Suicide in Tihar Jail seems strange and if true speak of poor management of a central Jail in the Capital of India. An enquiry ought to be conducted to see if it Custody Killing to hide things / to save others.”

I too agree with Atma Gandhi.
Where did he get the rope from?
Are cells equipped with a hook embedded in the ceiling that can be used to hang oneself from?
If so, what kind of jail is this where any criminal can hang himself.
What kind of management is this where such an incident is not foreseen and allowed to happen.
Something is fishy.
I await more details after the results of a thorough inquiry are made public.

I echo your sentiments, lady. For all we know he might have actually been mentally derranged and probably things didn’t quite go as we imagine. If he was out of his mind and clearly beyond his mental capacity, then the case would be different. Unfortunately, this case didn’t receive the legal attention it should have. If this is the way all rape cases will be tried and summarily judged, we’re in for some dark times ahead. Its all too easy to accuse and hang the wrong guy. Given the pressure, courts will fastrack justice and convict people on basis of evidence that would otherwise be inadmissible for crimes that really aren’t that wrong.

I am surprised at how someone could take such a step inside a jail. What were the jail authorities upto? I wish he had gotten punished and not died like this. This will not take us anywhere. Crimes like this will keep happening and one in many will continue to commit suicides or hurting themselves in one way or the other.

Things can only change if we fast-track our judgements and not let them continue for years and then years later close them for lack of evidence.

I might be a bit of an idealist here, but I don’t think capital punishment is justified, ever. It would have been better if he was given a life sentence without parole. And even better if he was rehabilitated and he went through therapy so deal with his violent tendencies. He could find a purpose in life. He could write a book. He could develop hobbies. He could even give his insight on culture.

I definitely agree with you there–he should not be released unless it’s clear that he’s not likely to offend again. But I do think people in jail should be given therapy and rehabilitated, even if they’re not going to be released. I think it’s better for society to understand criminals and criminal / aggressive behavior in fellow human beings–it may help in developing social programs to prevent such behavior in the future.

I knew some “capital punishment is wrong” and “Human Rights” fag will come and post crap about how death sentence is wrong. Capital punishment is very much justified. Some people cannot improve, ever. And they should be killed to ensure well being of the rest of us. End of story.

I’m not for capital punishment, you can’t give life back hence you cannot take it. especially in a country like India with it’s corrupt system. Yes it is a harsh criticism of our system but it is in my opinion justified.
I’m not for these animals roaming free wither, lock them up for good but dont kill them , you cannot bring them back, it is a terrible thing for even 1 innocent to die, rather than 100 criminals languishing in jail.

and certainly dont’ let them commit suicide, it’s a easier way out, make sure they live locked up. that much our jails can ensure.

IHM, I think that there is no place for words like “fag” on this blog. It is an inclusive space, and there is a fine line between free speech and unacceptable hate speech. I hope you will block such derogatory words in the future!

I agree with you. I think it’s possible for people in Jail to be productive. And capital punishment should be done away with completely. By letting the system kill people i think we’re confusing vengeance for justice.

This is a huge reflection on our SYSTEMS our criminal justice systems our penitentiary and police systems, a system which can not protect or have surveillance on an inmate inside their most reputed prison can never instill confidence in people outside that they will be safe and law will be allowed to take its course.

This is a reinforcement of the belief that Indian judiciary, police, jails – the entire system is incapable. Though I didn’t have any hopes from the system, but this was the least they could do- to keep the criminals alive till the trial.

When I heard this news in the morning, my heart sank. These people were supposed to be on suicide watch, how then can this happen?

This is the problem with our legal system. The laws that are in place are never enforced. Either the rapist is let go cos he is powerful, or is captured and tortured in jail and killed or suicide or something else like it. We never let it legal action actually take place.
And then we cry for better laws. What is the point of having laws if it is never enforced?

The fact that he was able to commit suicide in jail just goes to show how much our systems need reform.

I totally agree with you, he deserved to go through the trial and face the music, whatever the judgement might have been. I would have been happier seeing him serve the sentence he would have got. If it would have been death penalty, so be it.

I have been reading Times of India reports on how it was impossible for Ram Singh to commit suicide, given the tight security, his inability to use right arm, the tall grill ceiling and the impossible access to it. His father alleges murder. His mother says he admitted his mistake. What he committed was a ‘mistake’? He did not deserve any mercy. He should have been hanged. As per the TOI report, he reportedly met all his 5 friends and hatched a plan to rape a girl that night and then all of them went on a joy ride. Such people do not deserve any opportunity to reform. They will not reform. If they are left in the jail, they will somehow use their clout to come out of the jail and commit more offences. And we know this can happen in our country. I fully agree he should have faced all the legal proceedings and then
sentenced to death.
Nirbhaya, where ever you are, please know that one of the demons has died. 1 down, 5 to go.

I don’t understand why they would leave a man on suicide watch in a room with a ceiling grille with any bedsheets or long clothes and with other inmates who the man says allegedly raped him. I further don’t understand, given all of that, why the lawyer would say his mental state was “stable.” In the unlikely event of being found innocent, he would have had to change his name and leave the country in order to avoid being killed by a mob.

I don’t understand the state’s motivation in having such lax security for such a high profile case.

The only reason I am glad he committed suicide is because I don’t trust India’s legal system at all. Who knows if the other guys will even get good enough punishment. First I will like to see the other guys get lifelong sentence then i’ll start questioning this suicide until then i am glad this world has one less rapist.